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APA 7th ed. - Referencing Tool

American Psychological Association (APA) 7th Edition - Referencing Tool

Introduction  

Why do we reference? 

  • - Acknowledge sources: We need to always cite other people's ideas and information that we have used to support our own work. 
  • - Enable access: Including an accurate reference list at the end of our assessment helps the reader locate and access the information we have used. 

 

What rules do we need to follow? 

Each type of resource has its own referencing guidelines. Refer to this APA 7 Referencing Tool and the APA 7th Edition Referencing Guide for further guidance.  

  • - If you use a source, you must include both an in-text citation and a matching reference list entry 

  • - In-text citations: Page numbers must be included if possible 

  • - Reference list: Links OR DOIs must be included with all online resources 

 

Torrens University Australia Referencing Guidelines 

This guide is based on APA (7th ed.) and is adapted for Torrens University Australia. Modificatons affect the in-text citation of images, tables and figures. Watch this video on how to use the APA 7th Referencing Guide.

Reference List

Every in-text citation requires a corresponding full reference list entry. Equally, every reference list entry requires at least one related in-text citation.

A work appears only once in the reference list, regardless of how many times it is cited in the text. Works not cited in the text should not appear in the reference list.

 

Reference List Guidelines

  • - create a new page with a heading titled References (heading must be bold and centred at the top of the page)
  • - include all sources in alphabetical listing
  • - order entries alphabetically by family name of author or name of organisation
  • - list works with no author under the first significant word of the title
  • - include all punctuation marks and italics according to the guidelines
  • - use a hanging indent format, the first line of each reference entry is set flush left and subsequent lines are indented (1.27 cm)
  • - use double spacing (without an extra space between each entry)
  • - for online resources, a URL or DOI must be included

 

Watch this short video for a summary.

In-text Citation

When you have used other people's ideas and information to support your own assessment, you need to accompany it with a brief in-text citation. Each in-text citation corresponds to a reference list entry. You can have multiple in-text citations from the same source when required.

In-text citations can either be parenthetical or narrative.

 

Parenthetical in-text citations

Parenthethical in-text citations are added at the end of a piece of information in round brackets.

Structure: (Author surname, year, page number) 

Example: There are five key principles in project management (Smith, 2016, pp. 1-5).

 

Narrative in-text citations

You can also write in a narrative in-text citation style if mentioning the author's name is important as part of your sentence. After the author's name you would complete the citation in round brackets.

Structure: Author surname (year, page number) 

Example: Smith (2016, pp. 1-5) identified five key principles in project management.

 

Torrens University Australia in-text citation guidelines

Torrens University Australia's adaptation of the APA 7 Guidelines requires page numbers for all in-text citations.

Note: when page numbers are not available, include the paragraph number OR short title of the section and paragraph number instead. 

Structure: (Author surname, year, para. x) or (Author surname, year, section title, para. x)
Example: (Smith, 2025, para. 3)

 

Citing multiple sources by different authors in the same in-text citation

Order the citations alphabetically by the author(s)' surname. Separate each work with semi-colons.

Structure: (Author A, year, page number; Author B, year, page number)

Example: (Merriam-Webster, 2020, p. 426; Zickmund, 2000, p. 81).

 

Watch this short video below for a summary of in-text citations.

Direct Quotations

A direct quotation is the exact words from a written publication or a spoken speech (e.g lecture).

 

Short quotations (fewer than 40 words)

A short quotation always includes double quotation marks at the beginning and end of the quotation and an in-text citation.

Example: Narrative in-text citation with direct quotation

As Godfrey (2018, p. 52) advised, "the appropriate number of quotations to use will vary according to the subject and type of assignment". 

Example: Parenthetical in-text citation with direct quotation

"The appropriate number of quotations to use will vary according to the subject and type of assignment" (Godfrey, 2018, p. 52). 

 

Long quotations (40 words or more)

A long quotation is set out as an indented block paragraph instead of  using quotation marks. Single spacing is used for the block even if the rest of the text uses wider spacing. Any changes you make to the quotation should be indicated by square brackets. The in-text citation can be before or after the quote. The page number is always placed at the end of the quotation.

Note: If you leave out a section, use an ellipsis (...) to indicate this.

 

Example: Block quotation with narrative in-text citation 

Morley-Worner (2001) observed that academic writing demonstrates knowledge and understanding, and includes critical analysis and reflection, and that:

you will also gain a sense of the complexity of being an apprentice writer in an academic culture... where expectations may vary from discipline to discipline, even subject to subject and where you can build a repertoire of critical thinking and writing skills that enable you to enter the academic debates, even to challenge (p. 6).

 

Example: Block quotation with parenthetical in-text citation

Existential therapy offers four givens:

I have found that four givens are particularly relevant to psychotherapy: the inevitability of death for each of us and for those we love; the freedom to make our lives as we will; our ultimate aloneness; and, finally, the absence of any obvious meaning or sense to life. However, grim these givens may seem, they contain the seeds of wisdom and redemption (Yalom, 1989, pp. 4-5).

Paraphrasing

Paraphrasing means expressing an author's ideas in your own words. Make it clear that you are paraphrasing someone else’s work. 

 

Example: Narrative in-text citation with paraphrasing

Well-known strategic therapist Madanes (1990, p. 9) treats all symptoms as voluntary and under the control of the client.

Example: Parenthetical in-text citation with paraphrasing

A strategic therapist would treat all symptoms as voluntary and under control of the client (Madanes, 1990, p.9).